


You're Not Alone Anymore

by Mattagross



Series: Tachibana Hibiki Needs Therapy (And A Good Support Network) [1]
Category: Senki Zesshou Symphogear
Genre: ALL OF IT, Chris/Hibiki/Miku if you squint, Fluff and Angst, Like, Symphogear Spoilers, Tachibana Hibiki GETS a Hug, Tachibana Hibiki Needs Therapy, Tachibana Hibiki Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:21:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25454569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mattagross/pseuds/Mattagross
Summary: It had been a long time since Hibiki fell back into this habit.
Relationships: Everyone & Tachibana Hibiki, Kohinata Miku & Tachibana Hibiki, Tachibana Hibiki & Yukine Chris
Series: Tachibana Hibiki Needs Therapy (And A Good Support Network) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1845580
Comments: 15
Kudos: 40





	You're Not Alone Anymore

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is literally my first fic for this fandom and I don't think its *particularly* good but it took a long ass time for me to find my rhythm for Hero Aca fics too.
> 
> I loved every season of this show, but holy shit, these girls need therapy. A lot of it. And based off the way Hibiki acts sometimes, I don't know if she actually got it. Hence this.
> 
> Anyway, thank you for taking the time out to read this, I really appreciate it.

“You know, Miku would kill you if she saw you doing this.”

A cigarette limply hung from Hibiki’s mouth, embers falling from the lit tip into the wind, and then… fading. In her hand, a cheap, 100-yen lighter she got from a corner store.

“Either her or Genjuro-san.”

Hibiki’s legs hung over the edge of the dock she was sitting on, the sub having docked nearby, idly kicking as she took another drag. To her side, Chris plopped herself down.

“The old man wouldn’t do shit. He smoked for a long time himself, apparently.”

“Really?”

“He’s a war vet. I’d be more surprised if he didn’t, honestly.”

To that, Hibiki couldn’t say much of anything, and in lieu of a response took another drag of her smoke. The two sat in a comfortable silence, and eventually the smell of smoke disappeared alongside the remainder of Hibiki’s cigarette. If Chris was judging her in any capacity, it was all done silently. The comfortable silence eventually dragged into an awkward silence as Hibiki stomped out the remains of her cigarette.

“…a long time.”

“Huh?”

“I know what you’re thinking. A long time. I… you remember the last Zwei Wing concert, and…” Hibiki paused to swallow. It’d been such a long time since she’d spoken to anyone about this, about… _those times._

“…and how I was the only civilian survivor.”

Another pause as Hibiki sat back down, her gaze firmly fixated on the endless ocean in front of the two adaptors.

“It’s all a façade, Chris-chan. A front.”

“You mean—”

“I do want to open my hands for other people. I want people to be happy, and feel safe, and to understand one another… but its hard. I— therapy didn’t work all those years back, and things have only gotten worse from there!” Tears began welling in Hibiki’s eyes as her voice gradually grew louder.

“I was— so many people died, and they blamed _me. Me._ Not the Noise. It was _my fault_ that someone’s child died; it was _my fault_ that dad left for so many years; it was _my fault_ …” She paused, a few sobs escaping her. Almost instinctively, Chris put an arm around Hibiki’s shoulders as those sobs wracked her entire body.

“…I never apologized to Tsubasa-san or Genjuro-san for killing Kanade. I-I mean, i-it _is_ my fault she died… she died protecting _me._ If— if I wasn’t there, or if… _I had just died there…_ ”

“Hibiki…”

“A-and that was just the two years before I met all of you! Th-the only person I had apart from my parents was Miku, and… and then…” Hibiki squeezed her eyes shut.

Chris could see where that thought was going.

_And then Miku got involved._

The sound-based Noise that nearly killed her during the Kadingir incident.

Her brainwashing and fight against both herself and Hibiki during the Frontier incident.

And now… now Hibiki had to cope with the fact that, until recently, Miku had been the vessel for – at the very least – a genocidal Goddess. No matter what Shem-ha claimed afterwards, that was the only lasting memory that everyone involved would agree upon.

It was enough to break a lesser person.

After a few moments of relative silence, Hibiki finally spoke again.

“…but I can’t let anyone see that. I can’t. The past is behind me – _it can’t hurt me anymore._

“But it does, Chris. It _does._ And I can’t afford to break down, not with…” Hibiki gestured wildly at herself, at Chris, at the S.O.N.G. submarine, “…not with everything going on. I… I only smoked twice during those two years, and I hated every second of it, but it helped.”

“…I know. Honestly, I’m a little shocked you managed to hide this from everyone for this long. Your trauma and the smoking.”

“…its not the healthiest, but—”

“But what? Let’s put aside that you need to _sing_ to use this thing,” Chris idly tapped the Gungnir shard swinging from Hibiki’s neck, “and let’s focus on _why_ you’re doing it. Why you’re trying to take on the world’s problems while pushing your own to the side, and why you have to do this to cope with it. I’m sure the old man would be more than willing to let you – shit, is retire even the right word at this point? – _step down_ from being a Symphogear at this point.”

“…I can fix simple problems with my fists,” Hibiki clasped her hands in front of her, elbows resting on her lap. “but I can’t do that for the past. I can only try to fix things _now,_ so no one else has to go through what I did ever again.”

“…or me.”

“I’m sorry—”

“I wasn’t asking for an apology, dolt. Just… trying to remind you that we’re here too. We’ve all been through a lot of shit, and we’ve all helped each other through it one way or another. I don’t think Tsubasa or Kirikia or Shirabe or Maria or me or… even Miku would be here without you being here with us. And I’m sorry we failed you like this for as long as we have.”

Hibiki didn’t know when she got up, or when she found herself in a tight hug from Chris… but she didn’t care anymore.

“You helped us even when we couldn’t help ourselves. An outstretched hand that some of us didn’t deserve.” Hibiki bit down the temptation to say anything. “I know I can speak on everyone’s behalf when I say we’ll do the same for you, even if you don’t want it. You don’t have to do this alone anymore. Maybe the old man can train the nicotine out of you right now.”

“Its three in the morning.”

“He’s as much of a training nut as you are.”

“If you ever tell anyone this conversation happened, I am sending you back to the Lunar Ruins _my fucking self._ …I have a reputation to maintain, damnit.”

“…it’s the least I could do, senpai. Thank you.”

Hibiki slept peacefully that night.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed.
> 
> As always, you can find me at:
> 
> @Mattagross on Twitter


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